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in 1992 I saw an article in FSM about scratchbuilding an engine bay beneath the
wing of the Crusader; it motivated me to build one and I lent it to a hobby shop
for display. Unfortunately he closed shop and I never heard from the owner
nor did I get back all of my models.
Jump
ahead 14 years and I finally made one for me to keep! The Monogram is not
as detailed as the newer Hasegawa but it certainly is less expensive and isn’t
too bad considering it is a 1988 issue. There are some inaccuracies and
lack of detail; the nose gear has the “horns” that were on the
remanufactured Crusaders so I clipped them off with toenail clippers. The
seat is wrong so I borrowed one from an F-4 kit and added tape belts.
I’d added photo etched rear view mirrors but an accident removed them and sent
them into the carpet. The nose gear door should be at a 90 degree to the
fuselage bottom but Monogram has it meet the nose gear at roughly 30 degrees; it
also had the molded carrier approach lights wrong so I sanded smooth and used
decals instead. I cut the T.E.R.s from the kit supplied wing pylon and
attached M.E.R.s from an A-6E; the ordnance is mounted slant 4. The snake
eyes were also liberated from the A-6 kit. RBF tags are paper and thin
wire; the FOD cover is made from aluminum foil. The infrared sensor on the
nose of full scale Crusaders is capped with a germanium coated glass lens; I
simulated germanium by painting silver, then mixing Future colored with a
gray/white solution of paint. I used Cutting Edge decals for Trip Trey,
VMFA-333; I also used Hasegawa’s fuselage stencils as well as the stars and
bars. All went down well with setting solution. Finally, I weathered
with oils.
I
must thank some friends that I met through Dave Johnson’s Crusader website;
Dave himself for a great site, Randy Kelso (who also has a VF-154 Crusader era
page with great photos) and Veryl Champine. They helped to verify details
and passed on some stories as well. I dedicate this to all of our past and
present service members; without their modest sacrifices we wouldn’t enjoy our
freedoms today. I also (naturally) want to dedicate this to the USMC
Birthday as I am a former Marine myself.
I
currently have a couple more Crusaders in-work; one Hasegawa and a couple more
Monograms. I hope to finish a D model in VF-154 for my Navy F-8 friends as
well as a few more in Marine Corps markings.
By
the way, if you sand diligently you can get the Aires engine bay to fit the
Monogram Crusader!
Max
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